page_title: Clonmel
section_title: Cromwellian period
hierarchical_section_title: Clonmel / History / Cromwellian period
caption_attribution_description: English: Original tower at Clonmel historic wall. Located to rear (west) of Old St. Mary's Church.
context_page_description: Clonmel is the county town and largest settlement of County Tipperary, Ireland. The town is noted in Irish history for its resistance to the Cromwellian army which sacked the towns of Drogheda and Wexford. With the exception of the townland of Suir Island, most of the borough is situated in the civil parish of "St Mary's" which is part of the ancient barony of Iffa and Offa East.
context_section_description: Oliver Cromwell laid siege to Clonmel in May 1650. The walls were eventually breached, but Hugh Dubh O'Neill, the commander of the town's garrison, inflicted heavy losses on the New Model Army when they tried to storm the breach. That night, O'Neill, deciding that further resistance was hopeless due to a lack of ammunition, led his soldiers and camp followers out of the town under cover of darkness. The story is told that Cromwell became suspicious of O'Neill's desperate situation when a silver bullet was discharged by the townspeople at his troops outside the walls. The following morning, 18 May 1650, mayor John White was able to surrender the town on good terms as Cromwell was still unaware of the garrison's escape just hours before. Although feeling deceived, he did not put the inhabitants 'to the sword' as occurred elsewhere.
caption: One of the remaining towers of Clonmel's defensive wall
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